While she did not confirm Tillerson's meetings in Russia, Zakharova, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, said that "we are definitely surprised by the constant leaks of sensitive information from Washington". Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that the US intelligence committee that heard FBI Director James Comey's congressional testimony on Monday about alleged Russian ties was "confused". Hinting that Tillerson will be present when Xi talks with Trump, a State Department official said Tillerson told Xi he hoped they would meet again "very soon".

Many have criticised Mr Trump's 28 per cent cut to the budget of the State Department in his proposed budget, because diplomacy is necessarily a large part of the U.S. security agenda. "All decisions concerning the date of a ministerial are taken by consensus by all 28 allies".

A diplomat speaking anonymously to Reuters noted that Tillerson's plans to visit Moscow later in May, and the Trump administration's slights against the alliance, combined with its gestures of warmth toward Russian President Vladimir Putin, are cause for concern among some North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies in the former Soviet bloc. The spokesman said that the secretary's trip will come after a foreign ministers' G7 meeting in Italy.

He is also expected to be at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida when Chinese President Xi Jinping visits on April 6-7. Tillerson laid the groundwork for the meeting during a visit to Beijing last week.

If the dates are confirmed, Tillerson's Russian Federation trip will come on the heels of a G7 meeting in Italy. The president said in January that the alliance was "obsolete", while calling the European Union a "vehicle for Germany".

NATO's quarterly meetings are closed-door sessions over about two days in which governments discuss security strategies and approve top secret documents created to guide the nuclear-armed alliance in areas ranging from training in Afghanistan to defenses against Iranian missiles. "These nations must pay what they owe". He also accused European members of the alliance of not sharing US' burden concerning defense spending. Now five member countries, including the U.S., spend at least this amount on defense.

TBI urges vigilance as search continues for Middle Tenn. girl
Rowland said that the authorities are nowhere near finding a good lead that might help them track down Tad Cummins and his victim. The sheriff said Cummins may have begun plotting to leave with Elizabeth after he was suspended from his teaching job.

Tomi Lahren suspended from The Blaze
It would be lovely if she could just remain at the top of her Ivory Tower but unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. That's why we have these freedoms. "I am a constitutional, y'know, someone that loves the Constitution.

Electronics banned from some flights to US
Royal Jordanian's flights to Montreal , which now continues on to Detroit, would also be affected. The ban comes into effect starting March 21 and airlines are expected to comply within 96 hours.

Cops Think Teacher Kidnapped His 15-Year-Old Student
A candlelight vigil has been held for a missing 15-year-old girl who police say was snatched by her former high school teacher. The latter claim stems from an alleged sexual interaction between him and Thomas in January on school property.

Sesame Street to introduce new character with autism
The newcomer, #Julia, is special not just because she has orange hair and is seen always playing with her favorite stuffed bunny. In her first episode, Big Bird holds out his wing to shake hands with Julia , who is being introduced in the upcoming season.

Intel senators: No indication Trump Tower was surveilled
Nunes, who was on Trump's transition team, said that if you take his tweets literally, then "clearly the president was wrong ". On Tuesday, Spicer said the president was "extremely confident" the Justice Department would provide evidence vindicating him.

Death toll rises as ISIS uses Mosul residents as shields
A lot of them were women and children. "The troops have a target of retaking the rest of the Old City", a police spokesman said. The last week has seen the highest level of displacement yet, with 32,000 displaced between March 12 and 15.